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PBA Galleries (2 Viewers)

I found the other reference: it's from end of Longshot Pomes: "The closest I ever got to being a reporter was as an errand boy in the composing room of the New Orleans Item. Used to have nickel beers in a place out back and the nights passed quickly." In the 1982 letter he writes: "I finally got a job as an errand boy on the N.O. Item. For less pay than a roach. And I got canned because I was always in the bar in the alley out back where I was in love with a barmaid 25 years old than I." So he confirms the Item, the bar in back, and typically now expands the story with the love affair information. But I think this pretty well confirms that he had the job. When is the question. 1942? First trip to NO or second during the early Forties?
By the way, this reminds me of another question: How many times did B go to NO in the Sixties? He for sure went when he worked on Crucifix in a Deathhand, but was there a second trip? I keep finding contradictory information about this.
 
Oh is it over?

No catalogue received here pba... :(
 
Not over yet. Seems like it will never end. Watching the endless manuscript auctions is so exciting...

I was surprised at the good deals on a few things so far, but it's becoming sensory overload. I don't know how much longer I can keep checking in. I'm not a buyer, so watching is kind of masochistic.
 
This was my first auction and I found the whole experience pretty exhilarating. And when you consider the fact that I had to do my bidding earlier today while on the company dime, it was doubly exhilarating (is that titillating?).

There were some solid offerings that didn't receive bids.
 
That was exhausting and exhilarating. SO hard to not max out credit cards, use the mortgage money and so on. I bid on a number of the books with paintings, as I don't own won yet, but they consistently went one level higher than I was interested in going. I avoided the letters/manuscripts entirely. As it was I got three nice books at what I believe to be very good prices. Couldn't be happier.

Hope other folks got some gems.

UPDATE: Wasn't trying to be overly private. I was psyched to pick up 100 (Pulp, presentation copy), 117 (there's no business), 333 (wait until spring).
 
I wasn't sure I could bid in real time, so I placed a couple of absentee bids. What's annoying is that if you do use the real-time bidder, the "items you've won" window doesn't include wins from absentee bids even when you are logged in just as you had to be to place the absentee bids. So, any idea when they send out notifications/invoices?
 
I placed four absentee bids and watched two of them basically implode despite bidding higher than the high estimate. Granted, they were both presentation copies (Beerspit and Night Torn Mad) but I was surprised, especially after watching Days Run Away not even get a single bid. It was a good thing I had my spreadsheet handy. I basically identified everything I was interested in, pulled in low/high estimates as well as low/high/gavel prices from the '07 auction. I then cross-checked my interests with abebooks pricing and availability in order to come up with a warplan.

There were some lots early that I wanted but only if I could not obtain later lots - e.g. Africa, Paris, Greece, Dangling, etc.

What will come of the unsold items?
 
[...] 333 (wait until spring).

So YOU were that bastard outbidding me, right after I had to give in for 'Ask the Dust'!
(If I had known you want it, I wouldn't have raised the price by betting. Still a good deal for the future.)

I guess the high-roller on the floor for the ART was Linda B. It is no secret, that she's still collecting Hank's art. After the first few items in the Art-section, it was clear, that no one from outside would get even one piece of these. And I'm not surprised at all, that this specific watercolor-painting went that high. It IS a thrill!

What I ask myself is: who would buy all these Weissner-letters at such a price and why?
 
btw.:
unfortunately, I've lost connection to their server (not to the www) at a point, where I was especially interested: between #215 (on which I DID want to bid and it even went UNSOLD!) and #227. Took me some time to log-in and be able to bid again.

Not only have I missed #215, but also #224 and #225 in which I was interested in! And since #225 went cheaper, than I was ready to pay, my evening is in the gutter now! (well, it's not exactly "evening" here. It's 3:20 am.)
 
I think the biggest bargains were the books with paintings - they went crazy cheap.

Very few items seemed to have spirited bidding - exceeding estimates. I really wanted lot 305 - but I had to pick the one item that doubled the high estimate - and I didn't get it.

I picked up three lettered BSP/Paget - Betting On The Muse, The Day It Snowed In LA and Screams From the Balcony.
 
Factotum
The Last Poem [and] Tough Company
Septuagenarian Stew
Shakespeare Never Did This
Bukowski (#305)

I think the biggest bargains were the books with paintings - they went crazy cheap.

I agree. I was looking hard at Ham on Rye but it was eight lots after Factotum and I got the yips. It is simply too easy to hit the bid button. Thought about South of No North but when nobody bid on Septuagenarian, my fate was sealed.

The book that interested me the most from the get go was #305.

Shipping won't be cheap either. My god, am I going to have to grease some guy from pba to unbox them and put them on my shelf?
 
Roni : HA! Still, great prices on the signed Fante stuff. I definitely don't mind paying what I paid for the Bandini book. I'm really sorry you had those connection problems. That sucks!

Stavrogin: Holy incredible scores. Well done.
 
[...] Longshot...... Flower, Fist....and At Terror Street. [...]
All of which were great choices!
I was thinking about them too.
But knew, 'Flower, Fist' would go for more than I wanted to pay and also 'Longshot' went too far for me, esp. since it isn't signed. (The signed 'Groff' went for 2250.- some years ago) But I sure am aware, that it IS worth that price.
All these old ones will become the true treasures of the future!

[...] I really wanted lot 305 - but I had to pick the one item that doubled the high estimate [...]
"High Estimate" was a joke in this case (as was "low estimate" in some others). I've sold 2 copies of this one last winter in Germany for more than the price realized today and do think, this book is definitely worth it.

But speaking of MM-items (and since I'm aware, everybody here knows my relations, this ain't hidden promotion or something): It was TERRIBLE to see #306 not even going for 650.-!!!
Maybe if they had announced it as 'The Big White Book', it would have brought way over 1000.-
I wasn't fast enough somehow, but would buy this one any day for that price! This really went terribly wrong! If I had that one for sale, I would not offer it for less than 2000.- and I mean it.
 
So if my math is correct, 257 lots sold out of the 343, leaving 86 unsold lots. The rest of you seem to know much more than I do about these auctions, so what do they usually do with the unsold lots? Is it likely that Runfola will just hold onto them, because there were few that did not sell that I would most likley jump on the second time around.
 
Post Office w. drawing, $6600
Bukowski/Purdy Letters w. drawing, $5400
Genius of the Crowd, $4800
Flower, Fist, $4500
Longshot, $3900
Women w. drawing, $3600
Not Quite Bernadette, $3300
Ham on Rye w. drawing, $3000

Most poetry mss sold (at the low estimate), many letter mss sold well over the high estimate, and most paintings did very well. Despite the unsold items, I think this auction did better than expected.
 
I think the biggest bargains were the books with paintings - they went crazy cheap.
Yes they did. So did some of the non-book art (one of which was formerly in a book, but that's another subject). I still believe his art is undervalued. So does "the widow," apparently.

When the Dorbin with a painting stopped at $650 or $675 I was surprised. I lost that to Runfoola on eBay with a bid of $1100 if I recall. Couldn't justify the money it would have cost to get it this time though, c'est la vie, and all of that. Plus, I find the 20% vig to be more than a bit gougey, so I wasn't really motivated to try to take any of that stuff.

The auction did reasonably well, but I still think he came out very much on the losing end, considering what he used to pay for things. At least the things I know of and heard about. But if the collection wasn't meant as an investment I guess it doesn't matter. It's only money, right?

Oh, also, I thought the early BSP broadsides went for low amounts...I'm on my way out the door now so I can't check, but that's how it seemed as they were whizzing by...
 
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I ended up paying $75 each for 6 broadsides; 3 signed and some duplicates. As a somewhat noob Buk collector with a specific interest in broadsides, I was not happy at all with how they lumped some of the broadside lots together. Buk hand marbled each of the Chilled Green broadsides and even though I have one, I would have bid separately on the one in this auction if priced reasonably. Over all I think they mis-priced the broadsides. Pastoral at $700? and the crackedhead publisher pushing his unlimited copies on ebay just last week for $70! The Penny Poetry piece didnt sell either. That was my biggest shocker. ive spent a great deal of time looking for that one.

I did jump in on the early BSP broadside bidding, but the the spreadsheets said no. I think one of 'em maybe did not sell?
Like some others here I ended up with 4 spreadsheets for this auction in order to try and manage my emotions, easy to click a button....
 
Interestingly, I have been told by a dealer who attended the auction -

"Only five people attended the auction in person: three dealers, and two civilians."

The joys of the internet ...
 
"Civilians", huh? Guess they weren't armed then. What's the regulations about concelaed weapons at auction houses? Depends on the state I guess.
 
Anyone have a spare catalogue? They're nice for reference...
 
you wouldn't be able to tell, who these 5 people were, would you?

Unfortunately no - I have no idea who attended. But with State tax implications - unless you are a dealer and have an exemption - it is cost effective not to attend (so as not to attract the State tax on the purchase - on top of hammer price and buyer's premium)
 
One of the ebay sellers (treetotree - someone here probably knows who that is) already has some items from the pba auction for sale. There are also new pics of those items and from that I would infer that treetotree was at the auction and already has possession of his items.
 

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